The Potential of Distributed Networks
Raffael Kemenczy, Founder, Starfish Inc.
Society today is facing many challenges - political disorder, social upheaval, economic crisis and environmental disaster. The gap between the people's wishes and the actions of political leaders widens, modern lifestyles endanger social cohesion and decisions of the few have grave economic and environmental consequences for the many. Amidst these difficult circumstances, communication, as the basis of all organization, continues to become more centralized. The search engine regulates our perception; our data is hosted in the cloud, while our personalities are managed on social networking sites.
Is it worth sacrificing individual sovereignty in exchange for a cozy and unconcerned lifestyle? Can we afford to outsource the production of information as well as the filters we apply to receive it? What can we do to regain our independence and where do we start?.
The creation of a truly distributed communications network using modern methods could enable people to enjoy free network access, network neutrality, freedom of speech, a diverse information ecosystem and technology-aided social discovery to help build resilient communities. These and other emerging possibilities could facilitate fundamental changes in social organization. The social rather than the technological requirements for the manifestation of this vision will be the most challenging to achieve, both as individuals and society as a whole: For the price of freedom is responsibility.
In this talk, Raffael Kéménczy will illustrate how the creation of a truly distributed communications network using modern methods could enable people to enjoy free network access, network neutrality, freedom of speech, a diverse information ecosystem and technology-aided social discovery to help build resilient communities. It will be shown how this different kind of network topology could facilitate fundamental changes in social organization. He will also present the business models explored by his newly founded start-up, Starfish Inc., which will focus on facilitating the emergence and exploiting the novel possibilities of distributed networks. The social rather than the technological requirements for the manifestation of distributed communications networks will be the most challenging to achieve as both individuals and society as a whole: For the price of freedom is responsibility.
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